Creating resources for older learners

Why do we create resources for older learners?

Older learners often find it useful to have printed resources that they can refer to both during and between lessons. These resources help them to process information and follow instructions, and they’re a great memory tool for older people who might have difficulty retaining new information. They can also be a useful resource for tutors and volunteers to work through with their learners during sessions.

There are loads of great resources online, but Vick Virdee from ACDA Training, found that that many of the resources he found online weren’t appropriate for older learners because they:

• Made assumptions about learners’ prior knowledge
• Had content for a specific audience, eg for America
• Were too long or wordy
• Were out of date

As a result, ACDA Training started to create their own resources designed with their learners in mind.

Top tips for creating resources for older learners

You don’t need to reinvent the wheel. If there is already a great resource out there, use it. Save yourself some time.

Understand your learners’ level. Older learners are a diverse group and have different levels of skills and experience with digital. Differentiation is important. This means you might need to start with the very basics and include some more advanced tips too.

Keep your design simple. Content is key. The design should make the content as easy to read and understand as possible. Use a large font for older learners, and relevant images to represent what you are talking about (screenshots are great). And remember that not everybody recognises common icons, you might need to explain them the first time they’re used.

Keep your language concise and simple. For example, 'Select the option', not 'You should select the option' or 'The learner should select the option’.

Break down instructions into smaller steps. Even simple digital tasks may require several smaller steps. Put yourself in your learner’s shoes and draw on your experience. What questions have people asked you when you’ve taught this previously? What challenges did they experience?

Organise your instructions. Make sure the instructions come in a logical order and break content up by using headings and numbered lists.

Share resources. Ask your team for feedback. Encourage them to use any resources you’ve created and see what resources they might have for you.

Final Thoughts

Creating your own resources for learners can be incredibly useful, but it’s also time-consuming and requires lots of other skills. Make sure you look around to see what’s already out there before you create your own guides. For example, Age UK has lots of great digital information guides aimed at older people with different levels of digital skills.